Emily Woo Zeller rises to the challenge of bringing Chinese author Wenxuan's novel to middle-grade listeners. The story is set in the countryside during the Cultural Revolution. Sunflower, an orphaned girl from the Cadre School, is taken in by a poor yet loving family from the neighboring village. She develops a bond with the family's mute son, Bronze, as everyone--parents, grandmother, and water buffalo included--faces grueling challenges. Zeller fills many roles. She is the unobtrusive narrator who details the rich details of flora and fauna as well as the inner thoughts of each character. She turns on a dime to voice Bronze's grit and determination, the high-pitched squeal of Sunflower's fear, or the resolved and reassuring statements of the family's adult members.
(Historical fiction. 9-14)Pub Date: March 7, 2017
Duration: 8 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781536661828
Publisher: Brilliance Audio/ Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Liam Aiken narrates this prequel to the Series of Unfortunate Events in a somber, deadpan tone that heightens its dark humor. As a teenaged Lemony Snicket investigates a series of arsons in a town called Stain’d-by-the-Sea, Aiken creates voices that delineate character and help keep clear the large cast of Snicket’s associates, enemies, and enemies that turn out to be associates. Aiken’s tone of quiet urgency will keep listeners hooked through wordplay, mysteries, good meals, romance, and the appearance of a new villain named Hangfire, who hoodwinks adults, frames a librarian, and kidnaps all the children in town. This smart and funny listen will please Snicket fans and create new ones.
(Mystery. 8-14)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2014
Duration: 6 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781478955733
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
While narrator Liam Aiken evokes the wistful, dolorous tone of Snicket’s second mystery in his All the Wrong Questions series, he fails to deliver Snicket’s signature snark with appropriate vigor. In this episode, the main character, 12-year-old Lemony Snicket, continues the investigations that began in STAIN’D BY THE SEA with the case of the missing chemist, Cleo Knight. As Aiken delivers Snicket’s declarative sentences in a deadpan voice, his remote reading keeps listeners distant from the story. Furthermore, Aiken does not always play up the quirks of the town’s eccentric characters. When he does use individualized voicings, the story shakes off its languidness to some degree. Aiken’s melancholy narration echoes Snicket’s loneliness but doesn’t enliven the recording for young listeners. An attached PDF file includes the character Seth’s illustrations.
(Mystery. 8-14)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2013
Duration: 4 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781478924845
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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